To borrow a story that recently appeared in the New York
Times magazine...A Jewish fellow had just purchased a
Volkswagen. Horrified that he would buy a German car,
especially from a company accused of using Jews as slave
labor during the Holocaust, he was confronted by a buddy.
"How could you do this? How could you possibly buy a
German car?" His friend replied (with a nod to Socrates),
"Would you buy a pair of Italian shoes?" "Yes," the accuser
admitted. "How about a leather jacket from Spain?" "Without
hesitation, he responded. "Well, you know what Spain did to
the Jews during the Inquisition, and of course, there's the
matter of how the Roman Empire treated the Hebrews." "I
hadn't thought of that," said the denouncer. "So you see,"
the buyer concluded wiping a speck of dust from the
windshield, "It's just a matter of time."

The war is over, but some memories do no die so quickly,
and perhaps that's good. As the good people say, if we
forget about the Holocaust, we're more likely to experience
such a disaster again. Stephen King, who wrote the novella
on which "Apt Pupil" is based, has not forgotten, as he spins
a tension-filled tale of a 1940s calamity that has a visceral
impact on a Los Angeles suburb in 1984. Transcribed to the
screen from a script by Brandon Boyce, Brian Singer's ("The
Usual Suspects") parable on the contagious nature of evil is
affecting, though the adaptation falls short of being cathartic.
Essentially a two-character play expanded to take in the
ambiance of a high school and a wealth suburban
neighborhood, "Apt Pupil" is a dark story with an
appropriately somber conclusion, propitiously avoiding the
uplifting ending so popular in movies centering on high-school
kids. It features Ian McKellen, the great British actor, who
adopts a believable German accent throughout, with young
Brad Renfro doing a creditable job playing off his talent
against that of a real pro. "Apt Pupil" deals with what
happens when a bright 16-year-old discovers that a Nazi war
criminal is living in his immediate neighborhood. If this were
a conventional chase drama, most of the action would be
centered on the pursuit of the offender by the L.A.P.D., the
F.B.I. and perhaps the Mossad. What we get instead is an
intricate psychological drama pitting the ability of a bright,
ambitious, intensely curious boy against the skills of a man
accustomed to command in a see-saw battle for control. In a
greater sense, "Apt Pupil" digs beneath the civilized veneer of
its two principals to expose the evil that lies dormant, ready
to spring into activity when the moment is right. The Stephen
King signature is explicit in one scene of pure horror involving
the murder of a man who remains alive despite a serious
knife wound and several thumps on the head with a shovel
clutched by a strong and determined young man.

"Apt Pupil" opens in 1984 on a high-school history class
which has just spent a week studying the Holocaust. Todd
Bowden (Brad Renfro) actually does recommended research
on his own to further his knowledge of the event. After
poring over pictures of Nazi commandants in the local library,
he believes he spots a man who, despite the passage of forty
years, strongly resembles one of the photographs he has
looked over. Boldly introducing himself at the home of Arthur
Denker (Ian McKellen), he makes clear that he knows all
about the old man's wartime activities at an infamous death
camp, blackmailing him into revealing his first-hand
knowledge of the gruesome enterprise. Over a period of
several months he and this aged citizen have a profound
effect on each other, the old man renewing his memories of
what must have been the most exalted years of his life while
he in turn arouses violent sensations in Todd that the boy
never knew existed. As Todd continues to threaten the ex-
Nazi with exposure, Denker plays his own trump card to
intimidate the young man. Ultimately, the competition, fierce
but without physical brutality, turns into an episode of
violence that would not otherwise have taken place.

Bruce Davison in the role of Todd's dad and David
Schwimmer as his high-school guidance counselor provide
greater insight into the boy's social class, a privileged status
which, combined with his academic ability, would have
allowed him to pursue a successful, professional life. The
particular advantage that Denker claims in order to keep
Todd in line is contrived and not believable. Still, the
audience comes away from this movie certain that the
relationship savored by the two men will neither be forgotten
by Todd, nor will it do other than to harm his career and his
very future. As much as people of good will would like to
bring every last Nazi war criminal to justice "Apt Pupil" is, at
base, a warning that some truths are best left undisturbed.
The tense, skillfully acted--but never didactic--film will be of
particular value to adolescents who could not imagine being
so personally involved in an incident with roots in what they
probably consider ancient history.